The Venza does not get stellar reviews and I believe it is about to be discontinued. If you want something bigger and comfy, look at a V6 Highlander. But then again, Toyota’s retain resale value very well, so sometimes a 2 year old will sell close to the price of new-I don’t know who buys them, but there are people out there that do this.
Also, the Highlander might be too big for your wife, When we checked one out, my wife told me and the salesperson, I need a car, not a mini-bus. Alas, I agree with above that if you want to treat your wife to a nice car, you have to take her with you. Sometimes the color makes a difference and I for one, do not pay much attention to the color as long as it is not bright purple (well, honestly, if I got a great deal on a purple car, I might buy it).
The Venza wasn’t for everyone but if you don’t need or want the extra room of a Highlander and the wife likes it then go for it. I’ve got a co-worker with one who likes it very much. If you find another one and the wife likes it then go for it.
I wouldn’t worry at all about the car having been leased. It appears as though it had consistent maintenance over the period of a lease per carfax. I was not aware that carfax reported things like oil changes, but if they do, so much the better. I wouldn’t worry about it being in stock since September either. Fall is a slow time for used car sales since the new models are coming out.
IF the wife likes the car, and you can get a good deal on it, go for it.
And yes Texas can have floods. This years flooding made national news for several days. ANY used car in Texas is suspect. If the car was in a flood, but not reported to an insurance company, there will be no report to carfax.
Here’s what pops up on a Google images search for Texas flooding.:
Peel back the carpet. Look at the wiring under there, especially in the floor areas. If it has that plastic sheathing that has a slit for wire insertion. part the slit and look for residue inside the sheath. They can’t easily clean that out. Look in the trunk and the spare tire well, although those are easy to clean mud from. Is there any musty odor? If you can’t do that cursory inspection, hire it and a more complete one done. It’s money well spent.
In fact, a Highlander was my first choice. In Afghanistan and Iraq, where I’ve worked as a contractor in the past ten years, the most common vehicle contractors used was a Highlander. Ours would scream down the terrible 2-lane road between Kabul and Bagram at 70 mph with a full load of people or equipment, as smoothly as here on an interstate.
But when I brought home a Highlander for my wife to test drive, just like your wife, Galant, she said it was too big. Which it is. We’re empty nesters. What do we need with a car that can carry seven people? We once had a Camry, and it was, of course, great. The Venza is great too, even if its 20" wheels are ridiculously large and professional reviewers don’t much like the car. They don’t find reliability as important as I do, or their ratings would be a lot higher.
Color does make a difference. We won’t have a car with black, brown or gray paint. Mostly for safety (statistics compiled by Mercedes decades ago found that, everything else being equal, black cars were in more accidents than white cars; visibility they said), also just that we like white, silver or red. You mention purple; our beloved 1977 Chevy wagon was dark red/maroon.
If I bought a new Venza, it would cost about $36K, per KBB. As the car didn’t change much over its 2009-2015 lifespan, and as it was never a desirable car, used ones with 55000 miles, like the 2010 I was considering for $17K, seem worth it.
Between Austin and San Antonio, my car is out there, I’m certain.
With the variety of new vehicles at the 20000 dollar range I just don’t understand spending almost that amount on a used vehicle. One example is the KIA Soul .
You will find a nice midsize or compact sedan that works for you. If you can go up to $17,000 you will get a much newer car and will be much more likely to have a car that will take you to the point that you stop driving. Look at a Mazda6 or Malibu if you want a midsize sedan. They should not retain value as well as a Camry or Accord, and that is a good thing for you. A comparably priced Malibu or Mazda6 should be a couple years newer and have 15,000 miles less than a Camry or Accord. You may never have to repair anything with the Camry or Accord, but repair costs should be quite low for the Mazda6 or Malibu. The real year to year costs will be maintenance. You should never skimp on those if you want you car to last 15 years.
Color makes a difference? Oh yeah. Folks have said if they want to appeal to female drivers, they would have the cars lined up by color in the lots instead of by year or model. My wife must have been a Henry Ford convert because she doesn’t care about what car it is as long as its black.
Not sure if the OP is still interested in the car, but the lack of Carfax info for the 2nd owner isn’t an issue for me. Lot’s of good shops don’t report into the Carfax database. Both owner’s had the car for 2 1/2 years so they seemed happy enough with the car.
Not sure why it was an auction car? Perhaps the 2nd owner was a smoker?
jtsanders, I’ve just at the 2012 Mazda 6. Looks like they’re going for only about $12K. (?!?) And they look good in Consumer Reports (lot of full red circles). But it’s a sedan, and my needle seems to be stuck on “station wagon” for now.
bing, yeah, a lot of folks prefer black cars. Another reason my wife and I don’t is that here in southern Texas the summers are ferocious. White radiates heat, black absorbs it. No, a black car isn’t in our future.
If you want luxury on a budget, look at 2 year old Hyundai Genesis. It is sedan, buy powerful, relatively quiet and RWD. It is not a BMW, but then, could be had for bellow 20K probably CPO.
Do we actually NEED an SUV or station wagon? No. Without getting into a philosophical discussion on the difference between needs and wants, it’s true we could live without an SUV or wagon. But they do make loading suitcases, groceries, bags of fertilizer, trays of plants, and generally everything easier. If we bought an SUV or wagon, we could sell our pickup which, now that we don’t live in the country any more, gets hardly any use.
I started this discussion on the use of Carfax, and it’s kind of veered off subject. So let me close it here, with thanks to all for your good input.
I’m pretty sure I’ll be buying a used Venza or Lexus RX350 sometime this month. (They say it’s a good time to shop for cars in December.)
If I was in the same situation…the Highlander would be very high on my list…or maybe even a Rav-4. Being 6’3…I find getting in and out of my highlander to be a LOT EASIER then my wifes Lexus. Any SUV for me is easier then a car. The fwd HL or Rav-4 both get decent gas mileage. Not as good as my wife’s Lexus…bu the ease of egress more then overcompensates the difference.
The OP complained mildly that the thread had veered off course which it did a little. At least he now knows you are not going to get a 7 year 100000 mile limited warranty on a used vehicle.
As for the Venza being unpopular it was overpriced and not attractive.
Consider a Mazda CX-5. My daughter bought a 2014. She and her fiancé prefer using that one to his Mercedes C230. I’ve driven it, and it is comfortable, handles well for a SUV, and gets great gas mileage if you get the 2L engine.
I’m the OP. Not sure how it happened, but I’ve stumbled upon this thread I started almost two years ago. Thought I ought to close the loop and relate what my car purchase was.
It was a Venza, but not the one I talked about. Instead, it was a 2011, V6, white, with 75,000 miles.
Oh, and one owner, with all oil changes and maintenance (virtually none) recorded in Carfax.
The price was about $14,500 at a Lexus dealership. They were great about taking care of a few things in the weeks after I bought the car.
I’ve now had the car for 20 months and driven it about ten thousand miles. All city miles except for one 275-mile drive to daughter plus, of course, the interstates that run through San Antonio.
The car has been absolutely trouble-free. It doesn’t lose any coolant or oil. It’s the most satisfying car I’ve ever had (but then, I’ve had a Plymouth slant-six and a Dodge Dart station wagon).
Two lessons, at least from my perspective:
Carfax might not work all the time, but when it does, it works great.
Buy a used car at a new car dealership. (Between Christmas and New Year might help.)